London's Victoria and Albert Museum reopens
Mask-wearing visitors will be allowed to tour exhibits on two of the museum's floors from Thursday (August 6), strolling through 250 years of European Renaissance art, a dazzling Islamic Middle East gallery, and five centuries of fashion from around the world.
Tickets are free but visitors will be allowed in on a booking-only basis after months of coronavirus-enforced closure, marking another step in Britain's tentative economic and cultural reopening.
"So the V&A has been closed for 138 days, the longest period of closure in its history, stretching back to the 1860s. So, it's so wonderful to have the museum back open again, ready to welcome the public on Thursday so that they can come and see their collections once more," said museum director Tristram Hunt.
The 160-year-old museum, named after Queen Victoria and her husband Prince Albert, has been modified to meet the demands of social distancing regulations designed to prevent the spread of a COVID-19 pandemic that has killed more than 46,000 people in Britain alone.
Hand sanitizer dispensers have been dotted around the sprawling, mosaic-floored building.
The gift shop and cafe have been equipped with protective screens.
Further sections of the V&A's seven miles of galleries will reopen in phases later in the month.
